This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Conventionally, reclining articles of furniture (i.e., chairs, sofas, loveseats, and the like), referred to hereinafter generally as reclining chairs, utilize a mechanism to bias a leg rest assembly between retracted and extended positions and separate components to allow a back seat member to recline with respect to a seat base. Known furniture members can also include mechanism designs that also permit the reclining chair to rock in a front-to-back motion with respect to an occupant. Occupant lumbar support is commonly provided by one or more cushion members that abut with or are connected to a horizontally configured member such as a strap, spring, or similar flexible member. This member is commonly joined at its ends to vertically oriented backrest side support arms which are in turn rotatably connected to a furniture member chair frame.
Most reclining chairs upholster the chair frame and support the chair frame from a stationary base. Because lumbar support is substantially fixed to the back seat member, as the back seat member rotates, the lumbar cushion(s) provide the “feeling” to the occupant that they are extending forwardly and upwardly. This creates different lumbar support for the different rotated positions of the seatback. Many lumbar support systems are either not adjustable by the occupant, or adjustable using a manual system that would require continuous repositioning of the lumbar supports as the seatback rotates, and therefore can result in discomfort in either the fully reclined or upright positions, or in the leg rest extended position for different occupants.